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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/22455808">Saving Sandy</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/MsGordo_Writings/pseuds/MsGordo_Writings'>MsGordo_Writings</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>The Sentinel (TV)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Blair needs a break, M/M, Mother hen Megan, Polyamory, Polyamory Negotiations</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-01-28</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-01-28</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-04-28 16:15:45</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>14,458</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/22455808</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/MsGordo_Writings/pseuds/MsGordo_Writings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Megan grows worried about Blair when she notices how overworked and tired he seems.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Jim Ellison/Blair Sandburg, Simon Banks/Blair Sandburg, Simon Banks/Jim Ellison/Blair Sandburg</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>21</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Saving Sandy</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>This work belongs to MsGordo (https://archiveofourown.org/users/kipplemine/profile) and has been posted with her express permission in order to preserve it from Yahoo Groups.  If I have missed any tags or warnings, please feel free to make suggestions.</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Inspector Megan Connor walked into the break room of the Major Crimes unit at the Cascade police department and paused for a moment on the threshold before sighing and closing the door softly behind her.  She walked silently to the table in the middle of the room and looked down at the man sleeping there before shrugging off her overcoat and gently laying it across slumped shoulders as she slipped Blair Sandburg’s glasses off his nose before they became any more bent than they already were.  </p>
<p>Blair flinched in his sleep and looked like he might awaken for a moment before Megan laid a hand on his shoulder and soothed him and then he laid bonelessly once more over the pile of paperwork he had been working on when he had crashed.  Megan smiled fondly as her friend’s breathing evened out and then looked up with a fierce scowl as the break room door opened and Detectives Brian Rafe and Henri Brown burst in, intent on reaching the coffee pot that had been calling their names like a siren song as they had spent a miserable morning as lead detectives in the driving rain at a triple homicide. Both men stopped at the warning look from their colleague and then looked down in comprehension at Blair’s oblivious form.  Henri nodded and gestured to his partner to follow him as they crossed to the far side of the room to join Megan at the much anticipated coffee pot and set out three mugs.  “Hairboy, ok?”</p>
<p>Megan shrugged at Henri’s low words as she accepted the offered coffee from the tall, black detective and darted an anxious look at Blair to make sure their quiet conversation wasn’t disturbing him. “I think so. This is the forth time this week I’ve come across him like this and it’s only bloody Tuesday.” She shook her dark red hair back from her angular face as she sipped her coffee and then leaned back against the counter, her Australian accent heightened, as always, when she was upset or concerned. “Sandy just isn’t himself lately, he looks so exhausted all the time and I know he’s got a lot on his plate with all his commitments but I’ve never seen him like this before.”</p>
<p>Brian Rafe nodded his neatly groomed head and stuck one hand in his pants pocket as he lounged elegantly beside Megan in his usual impeccable suit. “I know. I’ve known Sandburg nearly four years now but I’ve never seen him like this. He normally thrives on all the stuff he does, you know?”  He sipped his coffee quietly for a moment before glancing at his partner. “Maybe we should have a quiet word with Ellison.”</p>
<p>Henri snorted into his own coffee. “Yeah, right. The way that guy’s been these last few months? Man, I’d rather go up against Kincaid and his goons again, babe. Naked and unarmed.” He slurped noisily at his coffee and added thoughtfully. “What about the Captain?”</p>
<p>Megan shook her head. “No go. He’s acting even more whacky than Jim.”  She frowned at Blair and opened her mouth to add something else but was prevented from actually speaking when the door to the room crashed open and Jim Ellison, Blair’s partner and official terror of Cascade PD, barrelled through the door. “Sandburg!”</p>
<p>The effect of his partner’s voice was electrifying on the sleeping Blair. He jerked up so hard he nearly sent his chair overbalancing onto the floor and his arms wind milled wildly as he fought for balance and to stop the files that had been disturbed by his movements falling to the floor. “What’s up, Jim?” Blair rubbed at his unfocused eyes and staggered to his feet as Jim stood by his chair with a foot impatiently tapping. “What do you need?”</p>
<p>“If nap times over, Chief, we’ve just had a call come in that the main suspect in the O’Ryan murder’s been sighted down by the docks, we need to get down there before he skips out on us again.” Jim glared as Blair began to gather his files and stuff them into his backpack and looked impatiently at his watch. “In your own time, Sandburg.”</p>
<p>Blair nodded and smiled tiredly up at his friend. “Coming, Jim.” He turned to follow his partner from the room and stumbled over Megan’s coat that had fallen to the floor when he woke up. “Shit!”</p>
<p>“It’s ok, Sandy.” Megan passed her coffee to Rafe and hurried across to the confused Blair as he scooped the coat from the floor and stared blankly at it. “It’s mine.”</p>
<p>“SANDBURG!” The bellow from Jim had Blair rolling his eyes and thrusting the coat into Megan’s hands with an apologetic smile as he hastened out of the room in Jim’s wake.</p>
<p>“Christ.” Brown sucked at his coffee and shook his head as Megan turned back to he and Rafe with wide eyes. “Remind me to start giving daily thanks that Ellison isn’t my partner, I’d have eaten my gun or shot that son of a bitch years ago.”</p>
<p>Rafe nodded in wholehearted agreement and poured himself some more coffee. “Amen to that, my brother, amen to that.”</p>
<p>                                     ********************************</p>
<p>If asked why she took such a personal interest in proceedings over the next few weeks, Megan Connor wouldn’t have been able to give a valid answer other than her excellent detective instincts were screaming that something wasn’t right with three members of the Major Crimes team and she couldn’t in all conscience ignore it.  On the surface everything seemed fine. </p>
<p>Ellison and Sandburg took on cases and solved them at their usual impressive speed, Captain Simon Banks still yelled and threatened them both with anything from suspension to a personal trip to see their makers if they ignored the rule book one more time but there was an undercurrent humming between the three men that hadn’t been there before.  Blair maintained his usual cheerful façade whenever he was in the bullpen and, when they were alone with him, both Banks and Ellison behaved much as they would normally. The problems seemed to be arising whenever all three men were together and Simon and Jim behaved like two large, angry dogs tussling over a particular juicy bone.  </p>
<p>If Jim said that he need Blair to ride along with him when he was following up leads, then Simon immediately countered with some anthropological profiling in a case that kept Blair restricted to the station for the next two days.  A week of stakeouts with Jim saw Blair up all night in the truck gathering evidence on an illegal gambling ring and spending his days with Simon putting together the quarterly statistics on the department when he wasn’t at the University teaching his classes and fulfilling his obligations there. </p>
<p>Megan finally decided that something had to be done to rectify the situation when Blair cheerfully, if somewhat dazedly, committed to helping Jim track down a major witness that had gone to ground and then agree to assist Simon with liasing with a few other departments on a vice case that they were all particularly keen to crack. The two commitments themselves weren’t so much the problem. The problem was that Megan knew for a fact Blair hadn’t slept at all the night before as he had been tutoring a nervous group of students through their mid-term exams and had then headed straight over to meet Brown, Rafe and herself on yet another all night stakeout when they had needed an ID on a possible suspect before he was arrested and Blair was the only witness that had gotten a good visual when he had been hauled roughly from his car and the perp had used it to make his getaway from a robbery that had gone horribly wrong.  </p>
<p>Megan scowled as she watched Blair reach for his third cup of coffee that morning and came to a decision. “Sorry, Captain, that won’t be possible.” She stood as the three men by Jim’s desk turned at the sound of her voice and made sure she wore her biggest, and most innocent, smile. “I need Sandy with me today. I have to take him down to the DA’s office to go over his statement one more time and then I need him to have a look through some mug shots to see if he recognises any of our guy’s accomplices in the robbery.” </p>
<p>“Connor, you don’t need Sandburg for that.” Simon drew himself up to his full six foot, four inches tall and glowered at the Australian woman as she crossed the bullpen and took a firm grip on the astonished Blair’s arm. “You need to…”</p>
<p>“Get on this right away, sir?” Megan nodded her lying head and flashed another smile at the speechless Jim and Simon as she grabbed Blair’s backpack and briskly headed out of the room and towards the elevator. “Absolutely. If you need us we’ll be with the DA.” Another blinding smile shone out of the elevator as Megan punched the button for the basement and the doors closed. “This will probably take a while so don’t expect us back today, Captain.”</p>
<p>“Um, Megan?” Blair, white faced and overly thin with exhaustion, nevertheless looked highly amused as he leant against the wall of the elevator and eyed his taller friend. “I thought we were all finished with the Delancy case? Where are we going; what’s this about, man?”</p>
<p>“This is about me getting you out of the station and away from those two maniacs for the day and stuffing as much food down your scrawny neck as you can take, Sandy.” Megan pulled Blair out of the elevator and towards her car, glaring back over her shoulder as he tried to protest and dig his heels in. “Don’t even think about it, Sandburg, I’ll have your arse cuffed and stuffed in the trunk of my car quicker than you can blink.” The car beeped as it unlocked and Megan pointed Blair towards the passenger seat. “Get in, Sandy.”</p>
<p>Blair shook his head in good-natured resignation and wisely did as he was told. “Have I mentioned how much tall, dominant red heads turn me on?” He grinned as he buckled himself in and Megan laughed beside him. “You got any other plans for my ass other than cuffing it today, Inspector?”</p>
<p>Megan peeled out of the basement and into the morning traffic. “Play your cards right, mate, and there may be a whip to go with the cuffs.”</p>
<p>Blair punched the air and whistled approvingly. “Hot damn!”</p>
<p>                                       *****************************</p>
<p>Megan waited until Blair was happily munching his way through a stack of organic pancakes complete with organic honey at his favourite breakfast bar before fixing him with her best steely-eyed detective look. “Ok, Sandy, what the bloody hell is going on with you and the other two bonzos recently?” She upped the ante on the glare as Blair blinked innocently at her and curled her lip in a threatening snarl for good measure. “Don’t try to bullshit me, Sandburg, I can kick your scholarly arse all over Cascade if I have to.”</p>
<p>“I’m not really sure that this is any of your business, Megan.” Blair wiped his lips on a paper napkin and shoved away his plate having suddenly lost his appetite. “You know how Simon and Jim get sometimes, we’re all a little run down lately.”</p>
<p>“No, Blair, you’re run down, the other two are just plain nuts.” Megan tucked a strand of hair absently behind her ears as she leaned forward and looked intently into a pair of very weary blue eyes. “This isn’t me asking as a colleague or even as a cop, this is me asking as a friend because I’m watching the slow meltdown of a person I care a great deal about and the two people that are causing it don’t seem to give a damn.” She reached out for Blair’s hand and smiled warmly. “Please, talk to me, Sandy, I swear it won’t go any further but I’m really worried about you here.”</p>
<p>Blair’s fingers instinctively squeezed the ones that closed around his and he made a game attempt to return Megan’s smile but it just seemed like too much effort. He sat back in his chair with a sigh and reluctantly let his hand part from his friend’s. “Megan, you don’t have to worry about me, man. Jim and Simon are just little tired lately and I’m just getting caught in the crossfire, that’s all.”</p>
<p>Megan snagged her coffee cup and leaned back in her own chair. “Bullshit, Sandy. I don’t know what’s going on but I know it’s more than just Ellison and Banks being a little cranky.” She stared down into her cup for a moment before deciding to pull out her big guns and looking up to fix Blair with wide, hurt eyes. “I thought we were friends, Blair. You know you can trust me, especially after all that Alex Barnes shit, you can tell me anything and I’ll never breathe a word to another living soul.”</p>
<p>Blair stared at his friend for a moment and then smiled lovingly. “Its not a question of trust, Megan, I trust you with my life, you know that.” A very heavy sigh made the thin shoulders rise and fall. “But not all of it’s my secret to tell.” He looked down at the table. “I wish it was.”</p>
<p>“Sandy, talk to me.” Megan slammed her coffee cup down on the table and shoved helpless hands into her hair in frustration. “You can’t keep going like this and it’s pretty obvious that whatever is going on with Ellison and the Captain they’re too wrapped up in their own pissing contests to care what it’s doing to you and I’m not the only one that’s noticed. Please, Blair.”</p>
<p>Blair looked at Megan with startled eyes and chewed his bottom lip as he thought over what she said. “Other people have noticed how they’re behaving?” He sighed again at Megan’s emphatic nod and shoved his hands into his own hair. “Shit. Shit, shit, shit.” He pulled at his hair despairingly and winced at the pain. “Megan, I don’t know whether I can talk about it, I don’t know whether you can handle hearing it.” Worried blue eyes looked mournfully at Megan’s not so patient face. “This is so huge, so weird, that you might never look at me, or Jim and Simon, in the same way again.”</p>
<p>Megan smiled and reached out to tap Blair’s cheek lightly and affectionately. “Maybe not, Sandy, but I promise you I’ll never stop looking.”</p>
<p>Another silence fell and Blair nodded as he came to a sudden decision. “Ok, but not here. Can we go to your place?”</p>
<p>Megan raised her hand to signal for the check and grinned triumphantly. “Sure, love, whatever you want.”</p>
<p>                                         *******************************</p>
<p>“This is nice.” Blair sat on Megan’s overstuffed blue sofa and looked around her small homey apartment. He grinned at the Victorian doll sitting on top of her stereo and raised a teasing eyebrow. “Not what I expected for the GI Jane of Major Crimes, but nice.”</p>
<p>Megan glowered. “You breathe a word about my dolly and you and I are going to get into it, Sandburg.” She handed him a plate of sandwiches. “Now, eat and tell me what the hell is going on, ok?”</p>
<p>Blair huffed out a laugh and obediently bit into his sandwich, moaning appreciatively at the filling of tender beef and mustard. “God, I needed this.” He chewed his way through the sandwich for a few minutes and then nodded to himself. “Ok, well first things first.” Visibly bracing himself he looked his friend in the eye. “Megan, I recently discovered I’m gay.”</p>
<p>Megan nodded back attentively and bit into her second sandwich. “Uh-huh.” She grinned as Blair gaped most unattractively at her with his mouth hanging open to show bits of bread and meat clinging to his teeth and tongue and squeezed his arm. “If you’re expecting an outburst of homophophic outrage, Sandy, you’ll have to do a lot better than that.” She scowled as a sudden thought occurred. “Is that why Jim and Simon have been so down on you lately, you told them and they’re freaking out?”</p>
<p>“No!” Still reeling from the ease of Megan’s acceptance of his confession, Blair burst into slightly hysterical laughter. “No, of course not.” He eyed Megan for another moment and smiled nervously. “I wish it were that simple.”</p>
<p>“Good.” Megan took another savage bite of her sandwich. “Because if that’s what was up with those two drongos, I’d have shot them myself. So what is the matter with them?”</p>
<p>Blair abruptly lost his appetite and threw the remains of his sandwich back onto the plate as he prepared himself for Megan’s inevitable shock. “They’re in love.” He took a deep breath and closed his eyes. “With me.”</p>
<p>A half chewed wodge of beef and bread exploded from Megan’s mouth and sailed over Blair’s head to land with a splat against the wall. “WHAT?”</p>
<p>“Simon and Jim are in love with me.” Blair shrugged at Megan as she fumbled for her can of soda on the low coffee table beside her and figured he may as well tell her the rest of it. “And I’m in love with them. I’m seeing both of them.” He grinned weakly. “Surprise!”</p>
<p>“Doesn’t even begin to cover it, Sandy.” Megan never took her wide eyes off Blair’s face as she swigged her soda back. “So the three of you are…”</p>
<p>“No.” Blair shook his head and turned slightly, unable to keep meeting his friend’s eyes all of a sudden. “Just me and Jim and then me and Simon. They both know about each other but neither one of them wants to stop seeing me and they’re just so happy when we’re on our own and I’m happy when I’m with them and it’s only when we’re all together…”</p>
<p>“Sandy. SANDY!” Megan held up a defensive hand to stop the sudden flood of words and smiled gently at her nervous friend. “Just take a breath and start from the beginning, ok? We’re ok here, I’m not judging you, I just want to help.”</p>
<p>“Ok.” Blair closed his eyes in relief, unaware until just that moment how very much he needed to talk to someone about his situation. “Ok. It all pretty much started after the thing with Alex Barnes and the fountain…”</p>
<p>                                         ********************************</p>
<p>Megan stared thoughtfully at the floor in her kitchen as she waited for her kettle to boil and let her mind drift back over what Blair had just finished telling her. On the face of it, the startling revelations were incredible, unbelievable that the three most masculine and heterosexual men she had ever met were involved in some kind of bizarre love triangle but then Megan allowed herself to consider Blair Sandburg and then the unbelievable suddenly became the credible and mundane. </p>
<p>Of course Jim and Simon were in love with the anthropologist, why wouldn’t they be? Megan had always known that the three men shared a special bond, right from the moment she had first met them she could almost touch the tangible threads that bound them together despite all the growling and posturing from Jim and Simon and the frustrated annoyance from Blair when they disregarded his opinion and thoughts in favour of their own. Megan had seen for herself the devastation on Jim and Simon’s faces the day they had pulled Blair’s limp body from the fountain at Rainier and worked so feverishly to revive him and she had watched as Jim had fallen apart when the EMT’s called Blair’s death and Simon had fought to hold his friend together. Now that Megan knew about the Sentinel thing she could more easily accept Jim working a minor miracle that day when he called Blair back from the dead but down at the station the regular cops were in awe of the silent, stoic man that had taken on death itself and won to prevent his partner leaving his side. Megan rubbed a hand over her stinging eyes as she remembered the relief they all had felt when Jim had shouted that Blair’s heart had started to beat again and the look of disbelieving joy on Simon’s face as the student had choked and coughed up the water blocking his lungs and had started to breathe again. No, it wasn’t so hard to believe that platonic love had turned into something far more where Blair Sandburg was concerned.</p>
<p>When Megan had poured coffee for herself and Blair she walked back into her living room and handed him a mug before sitting down beside him and joining him in staring at the patterned carpet. “Are you disgusted?”</p>
<p>Megan shot Blair an incredulous look at his soft question and bumped her shoulder against his in reassurance. “Do I look disgusted? I’m a little shocked and a LOT embarrassed that I call myself a detective and I didn’t figure this out, but I’m not disgusted with you, Sandy.” A mischievous smirk had Megan wrinkling her nose and bumping shoulders again. “I am a little jealous, however. The three most eligible bachelors in the department and they’re all tied up in each other. Life sucks.”</p>
<p>Blair choked on his coffee and then began to laugh helplessly in sheer relief that someone other than those involved finally knew of his situation and were happy to talk about it with him. “It’s just so weird, y’know? I mean, when I first met Simon and Jim they barely gave me the time of day, especially with all the Sentinel stuff and the mystical side of it but then I know I started to grow on them a little in a kind of little brother kind of way.” He grinned down into his mug. “You know that annoying kid that always hangs around with the bigger kids when you were growing up but you couldn’t shake off because his mom made you play with him?”</p>
<p>Megan smirked and leaned back into her couch. “Sandy, I grew up in the arse end of beyond with my brother and four of his mates for company until I turned sixteen and went to stay with my aunt in the city. I WAS that kid.”</p>
<p>Blair relaxed even more at Megan’s laughing confession and leaned back until they were cosily nestled together on the couch. “Me too, I always have been. I seem to spend my entire life playing catch-up with the bigger kids.”</p>
<p>Megan clinked her mug companionably into Blair’s in a wry toast. “Preaching to the one soprano in the very exclusive Major Crimes bass choir.” She took another sip of her drink and slanted a curious look at Blair’s profile. “So come on, you’ve given me the bare bones, Professor; now dish the dirt. Simon made his move first, how did you react?”</p>
<p>Blair sniggered in self-mocking amusement. “You mean after I peeled myself off the ceiling and stopped hyperventilating that my straight boss just laid a lip lock on me when we were working late going over files?” He grinned at Megan’s amused giggle and lifted his chin with grave dignity. “I managed to start breathing again after about fifteen minutes gasping into a paper bag in the bathroom and then went and found him and kissed him back. I handled the situation brilliantly if I do say so myself.”</p>
<p>Megan snorted. “Oh yeah. Nice moves, Sandy.” She angled a curious look at Blair. “So what did Jim say when he found out and how did you and Simon lead to his little revelation?”</p>
<p>Blair sobered as he remembered Jim’s actions in the weeks that followed. “We decided not to tell him until we knew where we going with it, until there was actually something to tell, y’know.  He knew there was something up but he just couldn’t work out what since he was pretty used to smelling Simon on me anyway and I made sure that I washed off pretty good if there were any more, um, intimate smells on me when I went home.”  His serious face cracked in a grin at Megan’s pained expression. “The joys of living with a Sentinel, Inspector Connor. Anyway, obviously Jim was pretty shaken up by the whole fountain thing as well, but you know Jim, he repressed and got mad and then when he finally made his move he did it with typical Ellison flair.”</p>
<p>Megan giggled again. “I can’t believe he locked you in your room!”</p>
<p>Blair tried to stay serious but couldn’t help joining in with Megan’s irrepressible laughter. “Trust me, Megan, I was pretty fucking shook up myself. Getting ready to go out with my older, male lover and all of a sudden my older male roommate locks my bedroom door and starts yelling about love and responsibility and that he can SMELL me and he knows I’m just trying to drive him nuts and he’s not letting me out until I admit it.” Blair shook his head incredulously. “Beautiful, man, just beautiful. Of course I had to call Simon to tell him I was going to be late and when Jim heard me using my cell phone…” Blair broke off and this time there was nothing funny about his expression or the shudder of remembered fright. “Man, that was not a good time to be me.”</p>
<p>“Sandy.” Megan threaded her arm through his and rested her head on Blair’s shoulder comfortingly. “I don’t know how you’ve put up with those two bozos.”</p>
<p>Blair smiled at the top of his friend’s head and rested his cheek on her soft red hair. “Me either. Thanks for this, Megan, It’s such a relief to be able to talk about this finally.” He absently rubbed his face over Megan’s hair as she squeezed his arm companionably and continued in a low voice. “When Simon showed up at the loft I thought for sure at least one of us was going to get shot. Jim was furious, more angry than I’ve ever seen him, and Simon was shouting as well and somehow they both started blaming me and then I was yelling at them and, man, it was a mess.” Blair closed his eyes and tilted his head back against the couch as he remembered. “A lot of stuff got said that should never have been heard in the cold light of day.”</p>
<p>“You’ve all been through a hell of a lot, Blair.” All teasing gone, Megan cuddled closer, suddenly cold as she thought once more of her friend’s body being pulled from a stagnant pool of water. “There’s bound to be problems from that.”</p>
<p>“Yeah.” Blair’s smile, never absent long, broke over his face and he sighed deeply. “Who’d have thought the main one would be that either my boss or my partner are going to fuck me to death before I hit thirty?” He winced at Megan’s choked off exclamation as she rested against his shoulder. “Sorry, too much information.”</p>
<p>“No, that’s not it.” Megan covered her mouth with her hand and tried to stifle her laughter. “I just had this vision of Simon and Jim chasing you round the station with these bloody great woody’s and you getting more and more tired…”</p>
<p>Blair snorted. “You may laugh, but that actually sounds pretty similar to my life. Once we all finished yelling at each other and Si and Jim decided they weren’t going to kick the crap out of each other then somehow I found myself agreeing with them that it made perfect sense that I dated them both for a few weeks and then made a decision on who to be with.” Bright blue eyes narrowed in suspicion. “I think they pulled some weird cop torture shit on me because for the life of me I can’t remember how they got me to agree to that and then after the time was up they wouldn’t let me make a choice and suggested we just kept going the way we were and I’m so fucking tired all the time.”</p>
<p>Megan pressed closer to Blair’s warm side. “If they’d have listened to you, who would you have chosen?” She tilted her head up and eyed his flushed face curiously when Blair remained ominously silent. “C’mon, I won’t tell them, Sandy.”</p>
<p>Blair smiled and closed his eyes once more. “I was going to finish it with both of them, I couldn’t choose. Jim’s my best friend, my Sentinel, and he’s always got me a little hot under the collar, y’know? But he’s never really been what you’d call reliable, I know he’d die for me and kill for me but I can’t rely on him to live for me, man. Every time something came up or we ran into a problem, he’d yell at me first and then worry about the fall out later and then we’d go on and I’d be on a knife edge until the next blow out and it happened all over again.” Blair shrugged to himself. “It was almost a relief when disaster used to strike because then I at least knew where I stood, but it never stopped me loving him. Simon’s not like that, he’s so dependable and even when he doesn’t want to, he always listens and he’ll apologise when he’s wrong or he’s made a mistake and he can be really funny and kind and I just haven’t had enough of that in my life, man. Turns out this free spirit needs someone to be nice to them just as much as the next person, who knew?”</p>
<p>Megan smiled at the underlying outrage at his own neediness in Blair’s voice as he finished talking and kicked off her shoes to curl her legs up behind her on the couch. “So they basically wouldn’t let you choose because they were both worried about losing you and having to see you with the other one and you were planning on dumping them both to spare you all that?”</p>
<p>Blair nodded glumly. “Yup. Only know they’re both trying to not-so-subtly score points off each other by both carrying on a full-time relationship with me without acknowledging the other one exists outside work and they’re both forgetting that I have University as well and I haven’t seen any of my other friends for weeks and I’m trying to accommodate both of them so no one gets hurt but I’m just getting so tired and I’m falling behind in my classes and grading and I just want a couple of hours peace where they aren’t both yelling at me and demanding I spend time with them.” He brightened momentarily. “On the flip side, I’ve managed to get to every Jags home game for the last three months thanks to them both trying to outdo each other.”</p>
<p>“Almost worth it.” Megan grinned at Blair’s tired face and pressed a sudden affectionate kiss to his pale cheek. “Look, I don’t really have any advice for you at the moment, but why don’t you get away for a couple of days? Rafe and H have persuaded me that I really want to go fishing with them this weekend and I know they’d love to have you along. Why don’t you just tell your guys that you need a break and come with us?”</p>
<p>“I couldn’t do that.” Blair shook his head and smiled gratefully. “I don’t want to intrude…”</p>
<p>“Oh bollocks, Sandy, you’re a bloody anthropologist, that’s your bloody job.” Megan snorted most inelegantly and stood to go for more coffee. “Just give them both the slip and come away with us for the weekend, if nothing else you might be able to actually sleep in a bed for a change instead of screwing through it.”</p>
<p>Blair grinned as he watched Megan’s swaying hips retreat into the other room. “It’s not that bad, although I’m not gonna deny a break from doing the horizontal mambo doesn’t sound too bad.” He jumped as Megan’s horrified face suddenly appeared in the kitchen doorway. “What?”</p>
<p>“Blair Sandburg turning down sex, is there an apocalypse scheduled that no one told me about?” Megan waved the teaspoon in her hand at her friend and pointed a finger for good measure. “That’s it, you’re coming with away with us if I have to stuff you in the trunk myself.”</p>
<p>Blair relaxed with a laugh as Megan’s head disappeared again and contemplated a peaceful weekend fishing with the younger detectives of Major Crimes without the older ones yelling at them, or, more specifically, at him. “That’s the second time today you’ve threatened me with that and I see no sign of the whip you promised earlier. You tease.” </p>
<p>Megan laughed. “Slut. Come and help me find some cookies, Sandy, and we’ll start planning how we’re going to smuggle you out of Cascade for the weekend, ok?”</p>
<p>Blair jumped up feeling more energised and like himself than he had for weeks. “Ok, man.” He bounced into the small kitchen and impulsively caught his friend around the waist and waltzed her around the enclosed space. “Megan, you’re a great friend, thanks.”</p>
<p>“That’s what I’m here for, Blair.” Megan grinned up into Blair’s face as she was dipped back over his arm and waggled her eyebrows lecherously. “So, come on, spill the beans. Who’s got the bigger whanger, Ellison or Banks?”  </p>
<p>                                       ***************************</p>
<p>Blair would have probably backed out of the weekend away if he hadn’t had to suffer through a full interrogation from both of his partners as to how he spent his day with Megan when they both called the DA’s office looking for him and found him not there, then they both managed to drag him into their separate beds for two bouts of mind blowing sex that left him appreciative but almost unable to sit up after the last orgasm Jim pulled from his protesting body before finally allowing him to catch an hour’s sleep before his classes the next day.  </p>
<p>Blair managed to stagger through his day and then called Simon at work to give him the impression with a few carefully selected words that he would be spending the weekend on his own with Jim and then called Jim at the loft to recite the exact same speech but this time giving the impression he would be staying with Simon. Secure in the knowledge that neither man would lower themselves to calling the other’s houses to check up on their partner, he then called Megan and arranged to meet her at her home after he had swung by the mall to pick up a few bargain basement clothes to supplement the ones that he had managed to stuff in his rucksack that morning without Jim noticing.</p>
<p>Megan had opened her front door to him with a big smile, took one look at his exhausted face and bundled him into her bathroom to take a hot bath while she made him dinner and then tucked him up in her spare room by nine thirty with the promise that she would call him in good time for their early start in the morning when Rafe and Henri came for them at five.  She waited until Blair fell asleep, which took all of four and a half minutes, and then removed the battery from his cell phone and emptied his rucksack of the papers he had brought from his office to grade while they were away, absolutely determined that the next two days would be spent in nothing but much needed rest for her friend.</p>
<p>Rafe and Brown showed up on time the next morning and, with the minimum of teasing and name calling, hustled the still half asleep Blair and Megan into Henri’s SUV before peeling out of town and heading for the hills. </p>
<p>And the four of them would have got clean away with their vacation if Raymond Carletto, small time thief and bad judge of character, hadn’t decided to go into a darkened alley the night before with a questionable acquaintance and gotten his head blown off when he couldn’t make good on the small fortune he owed to a very unforgiving loan shark. Neither Simon or Jim were pleased when they got the call that rousted them from their warm beds at seven thirty on Saturday morning, but it was nothing compared to the black moods that settled when they arrived at the crime scene and found themselves both missing a curly haired anthropologist who was by that time a hundred and fifty miles from the outskirts of Cascade and accelerating thanks to Megan waking up properly and sulking until Henri let her drive.</p>
<p>                                        ************************** </p>
<p>“What do you mean he’s not with you?” Jim Ellison managed to keep his voice down to a low growl instead of a full-throated roar in deference to the other cops working the crime scene, but just barely.  “I know he spent last night at your house.”</p>
<p>Captain Simon Banks fisted his hands on his hips, glared at his best detective and unhappy love rival and growled back. “And I’m telling you he didn’t. I thought he was with you and that I wouldn’t be seeing him until after the weekend.”  He took a step closer to Jim and made use of his extra couple of inches in height as he invaded the Sentinel’s personal space. “I don’t know what game you’re playing, Ellison, but you’d better stop it now. I don’t find this funny.”</p>
<p>Jim snorted and stepped into his captain’s body, muscles bunching under his clothes as he snarled. “I’m not playing at anything, SIR. I know you’ve got Sandburg at your house and I’m telling you I need him here with me.” A flash of satisfaction lit the pale blue eyes. “I’m afraid you’ll have to put whatever plans you had on hold until we catch our killer.”</p>
<p>The first niggle of unease wriggled insidiously in Simon’s belly as he realised that Jim wasn’t kidding around and deliberately stonewalling him. “Ellison…Jim, I’m telling you I haven’t seen him since he left my place and drove home Thursday night.”</p>
<p>Jim listened carefully to his captain’s heartbeat and realised he was telling the truth. He backed off a step and stared into worried chocolate eyes. “And he’s not with me.” A muscle in his jaw began to twitch as he realised that his Guide, his love, was most definitely missing. “So where in the hell is he?”</p>
<p>                                      *********************************</p>
<p>H grinned affectionately towards the bank of the river he was currently standing in and shook his head as he watched Blair sleep peacefully under their picnic blanket and Rafe’s spare overcoat. “You think Hairboy is ever going to wake up?”</p>
<p>Megan looked around from where she was patiently listening to Rafe explain how to cast her line and smiled at Blair’s relaxed face. “Leave him, he needs all the rest he can get.” She turned back to Rafe and slapped his hands away from her rod and reel. “Rafe, I grew up in the bush, I know how to bloody fish.” She pulled back her rod and expertly snapped the line out into the centre of the river happily unaware that her cell phone was back at their shared cabin ringing persistently as two very angry and worried men in Cascade began to ring around all of their acquaintances in a bid to find their missing lover.</p>
<p>                                      *******************************</p>
<p>“Megan’s not answering her phone and Blair’s is still switched off. Dammit!” Jim slammed the handset of Simon’s office phone back into its cradle and glared at his boss who was just finishing up a call to Joel. “Where the hell is everybody today?”</p>
<p>Simon unhooked the speaker of his cell from his ear and tossed it down on the desk in disgust. “Connor’s with Rafe and Brown. Joel says that they’ve headed up into the mountains to do some fishing and that they were planning on leaving before first light this morning, they won’t have seen him.”</p>
<p>Jim got to his feet. “I’m going to the loft to see if I can find his address book and get some names to call at Rainier, can you look though his stuff here and see if there’s anything useful?” </p>
<p>Simon nodded briskly. “Sure. Jim, I’m sure he’s fine, there’s just been a misunderstanding along the line. You know what he’s like, he’s probably got caught up in some book at the University and forgot he made plans.” He watched Jim slam out of his office and waited a few moments before raising his eyes pleadingly to heaven. “Please, God, let that be it.”</p>
<p>                                *********************************</p>
<p>Much later that day, after a very satisfactory few hours of fishing and shooting the breeze with his friends, Rafe deftly removed a half finished plate of pasta from under Blair’s nodding head and grinned at his partner as H quickly slipped a folded sweater between Blair’s cheek and the table and watched the worn out man tumble headlong into sleep once more. “Sandburg’s starting to give me a complex. Has he stayed awake for more than an hour since we got up here this morning?”</p>
<p>H laughed quietly and reached for his beer as he eyed the sleeping man. “Nope. This is the quietest I’ve ever seen him.”</p>
<p>Megan came back to the table and began to pass out bowls of ice cream glancing at Blair with fond exasperation. “Let him alone, we’ll wake him up in an hour or so for a few hands of cards before bed.”</p>
<p>“Great.” Rafe began to dig into his ice cream and flashed a grin at his colleagues. “If he’s this out of it I might actually stand a chance of winning.” He cocked an ear as he caught a faint noise coming from Megan’s bedroom. “What’s that?”</p>
<p>“Huh?” Megan glanced up and then shrugged as she began to hoover up her chocolate dessert. “Oh I think I forgot to charge my phone last night before I left, the battery’s probably dying, I’ll get it in a minute.”</p>
<p>“Ok.” H beamed hopefully at Megan and promptly forgot the beeping cell phone. “Don’t suppose we can persuade you to make it strip poker?”  </p>
<p>                                     ******************************</p>
<p>For the first time in nearly four years Simon Banks found himself in the position of having to knock at the door of Jim Ellison’s apartment to gain entry instead of having a smug grin aimed his way when the door was pulled open as he stepped of the elevator. The sense of hope he had been clinging grimly onto all day withered and died in his chest as Jim tugged open the door when he beat on it for the third time and stared at him with desperate eyes. “Did you find anything, Simon?”</p>
<p>Simon swallowed as he stepped into the loft and shut the door behind him, feeling the skin on the back of his neck start to crawl in terror for the missing Blair. “No. The only things at the station had to do with your cases, there’s nothing personal there. What about you?”</p>
<p>Jim shot a frustrated look at the dining table where an open notebook and the phone lay abandoned and scrubbed cold hands through his short hair. “Nothing. I rang every number in the book and all I could find out was that no one’s seen him for weeks apart from when he showed up to teach his classes or to take his office hours.” A sharp breath of aggravated air escaped the Sentinel as he turned towards the kitchen in search of a cold drink. “One of his friends even said that he thought Blair had moved out of town it’s been so long since he’s seen him.” Blue eyes darted to Simon’s worried face and appeared to ponder something before Jim sighed and leaned tiredly against the refrigerator. “There’s something else, some of his clothes are missing.”</p>
<p>“What?” Simon stared in confusion at Jim and shook his head. “I don’t understand.”</p>
<p>“I had to go into his room to get his phone book and he’d left his closet door open and a couple of drawers. He doesn’t have that many clothes anyway, so it was pretty easy to see that some were gone.”  Jim closed his eyes at the stab of pain in his chest and then forced himself to look at his Captain and partner in pain. “I think he’s left us.”</p>
<p>“God, are you sure?” Simon fumbled for a chair and sat down heavily at Jim’s sharp nod. “God, forgive me; I almost wish he’d been snatched again.” He stared at the floor between his spread thighs for a long painful moment and then looked up accusingly at his friend. “What the hell did you do to him, Ellison?”</p>
<p>                                        ****************************** </p>
<p>Megan sat on the edge of her bed and absently rubbed a towel over her wet hair as she read the bodice ripper she had stashed in her bag as it lay propped up against her pillows.  She was pleasantly tired from a day spent in the fresh air in good company and was planning on spending a half hour or so losing herself in her marvellously escapist historical romance before settling down for a good night’s sleep. She could hear Rafe and H chatting quietly outside the cabin over their last beer of the night as they wound down themselves and Blair was once more sleeping peacefully, this time on the pull out sofa bed in the living room, and it was looking increasingly unlikely that he would wake any time before lunchtime tomorrow. Megan grinned as she gave her hair a final rub and tossed the used towel jubilantly across the room to land on the antique rocking chair in the corner. Operation Rescue Blair had gotten off to a fantastic start and she fully intended to get Blair back to his old self before the weekend was over or die trying in the attempt. </p>
<p>As Megan was pulling back the comforter on the bed her eyes was caught by her cell phone lying on the bedside cabinet and she pulled a face as she remembered that she had to dig out the charger and replenish the exhausted battery.  Making quick work of rooting through her bags until she came across the wire and plug, it took her slightly longer to find the electrical outlet but finally she tracked it down to behind the bed and plugged the phone in.  As the screen lit up to let her know that the charger was connected correctly she noticed that the usual date and time on the LCD display was absent and in it’s place was the accusing notice of ’14 missed calls.’ “Uh-oh.” </p>
<p>Megan hastily entered the menu to find out the caller’s id and wasn’t too surprised to find that either Simon Banks or Jim Ellison’s name came up for all fourteen calls. She picked up her watch from the cabinet and saw it was nearly midnight and bit her lip in hesitation before sighing in resignation and punching in the phone number for the loft. The phone rang twice before it was snatched up at the other end and Jim’s frantic voice bellowed down the line. “Chief, is that you?”</p>
<p>Megan jumped at the harsh greeting and then smiled as she caught Simon’s angry voice in the background and settled back against her pillows with a smug little wriggle. “Ellison, it’s Connor. Missing someone are we?”</p>
<p>                                    **********************************</p>
<p>“Connor?” Jim scowled in disappointment for a moment before Megan’s words registered. “What? Wait, is Sandburg there, is he with you?” Jim turned his back on Simon as he tried to grab for the phone and batted away the taller man’s hands angrily. “Is he alright, can I talk to him?” The Sentinel’s ears flushed bright red with rage as Megan replied and he clutched the handset tightly. “Don’t jerk me around, Connor. Is he there or not?”</p>
<p>Back at the cabin, and enjoying herself immensely, Megan grinned up at the ceiling and snuggled a little further under her covers. “I don’t know, remind me again what he looks like?”</p>
<p>“CONNOR!” Jim kicked a chair across the room in anger and shoved Simon away as he tried once more to grab the phone. “Stop fucking with me and tell me if Sandburg’s with you!”</p>
<p>Megan, secure in the knowledge that neither Rafe, Brown or herself had disclosed the exact location of their retreat to anyone and therefore she wouldn’t have to deal with a very pissed off Sentinel before she was good and ready, laughed and crinkled the wrapper of a candy bar next to the phone. “Sorry, what was that, Ellison? You’re breaking up.”  She laughed as the sounds of a scuffle and some very vicious cursing came down the wire and then laughed louder as she heard Simon finally gain possession of the phone with a violent expletive. “And good evening to you, sir.”</p>
<p>“Connor, I am ORDERING you to tell me where Sandburg is.” Simon kept a wary eye on Jim as the younger man glared at him and nursed a throbbing kneecap thanks to a very unsporting kick from his superior. “I mean it, Inspector.”</p>
<p>Megan snorted. “With all due respect, sir; blow it out your arse. You don’t need to worry about Sandy, he’s safe and well but I think the best thing I can do for him is to keep him away from you two idiots for as long as I can.” Megan sucked in a breath and prepared for her big finish with relish. “I’m switching my phone off now, Captain; if you’re lucky I might decide to switch it back on in the morning and we can continue this conversation when you two start thinking with the heads on your shoulders instead of the ones in your pants. Goodnight.” She depressed the disconnect button with a flourish and turned off the phone with a delighted chuckle, right in the middle of a loud protest from both Simon and Jim. “God I’ve waited a long time to do that.” Megan discarded her book and snapped off the overhead reading light with a happy sigh as she snuggled down under the covers and slipped into the sleep of the righteous.</p>
<p>Back in Cascade, Simon stared in shock at the phone in his hand and then at Jim’s equally stunned face. “Well, shit.”</p>
<p>                                        ******************************* </p>
<p>Megan took her sweet time in switching her phone back on in the morning and enjoyed a leisurely breakfast with her three friends and a stroll through the forest surrounding them before begging off going fishing with the excuse that she wanted to catch up on her reading and try out a new recipe for casserole for lunch. Rafe and Henri had happily trotted off to the river with the promise of a truly spectacular meal awaiting their return and Blair had sat himself down on the couch to start grading his papers, only to find they were still back at Megan’s apartment and all he had to occupy him was the anthropology journals that Megan had generously decided to let him keep. Megan had gone into the kitchen to make them both a cup of coffee and had come back into the room to find Blair once again passed out on the couch, his nose pressed firmly into a picture of a naked native’s crotch.  She grinned, removed the magazine and covered Blair with a blanket folded on the back of the couch before taking her coffee and phone and stepping out onto the porch to enjoy some weak morning sun.  When Megan had sipped her way through half her coffee she turned her phone on and waited expectantly for it to ring. Which it did. Less than two minutes later. Megan was impressed it had taken them more than thirty seconds to discover she was back in contact. “Hello?”</p>
<p>“Connor, your butt is on the first flight back to Oz the minute your skinny ass gets back into Cascade.” Simon Banks’ extremely unimpressed voice roared down the phone at her and Megan grinned in amusement. </p>
<p>“Goodbye, Captain.” Megan cut off the call and chortled happily at the thought she’d hung up on her commanding officer twice in less than twenty-four hours. The phone rang again and she answered with saccharine sweetness. “Yes?”</p>
<p>“GODDAMMIT, CONNOR…” Megan rolled her eyes and terminated the call once more. Three for three. She was beginning to see why both men were divorced and why they had both been so determined to hang onto Blair Sandburg even if it had meant sharing him between them. Her favourite anthropologist was obviously the only person on the face of the planet who could even consider putting up with Banks and Ellison. She took another hit of coffee and hummed appreciatively while she waited for the phone to ring again and smiled to herself when it obliged.</p>
<p>“Megan, it’s Jim. We just want to know if he’s ok.” Megan swallowed the chuckle at the tone of forced humbleness in Ellison’s voice and reflected that things must be bad back in Cascade if the big man had lowered himself to first name terms. “Megan?”</p>
<p>“Sandy’s fine, Ellison.”  Megan finished her coffee and tossed the last dregs into the grass by her feet. “We’re taking good care of him.”  She smirked as the audible sound of Jim’s teeth grinded floated down the line and cast an appreciative eye at the cobalt blue sky.</p>
<p>“Could you ask him to come to the phone?” Jim’s teeth ground against each other again. “Please?”</p>
<p>Megan figured it was time to up the stakes a little and leaned back against the railing as she shifted to get more comfortable. “Sorry, Ellison, Sandy’s still unconscious, you’ll have to make do with me.”</p>
<p>“He’s WHAT?” Jim’s voice lost its humble tone and went back to his customary snarl. “What the hell happened, why isn’t he in a hospital? Dammit, Connor, what did you do to him?”</p>
<p>“Me? I didn’t do anything, Ellison.” Megan wriggled her toes in the fresh grass and idly noticed that she really needed a pedicure. “The blame for your partner’s burn out can be laid squarely at the doors of yourself and our beloved Captain’s. Congratulations, fellas, you managed to achieve what countless bad guys and villains couldn’t; you broke Sandy.” Pained silence echoed down the line at her and Megan delivered her smack down. “And just in case you haven’t figured it out yet, boys, he told me everything that’s been going on.”</p>
<p>“Connor…” Jim broke off and Megan strained to hear what was being said as a hand muffled the phone at the other end and then Jim’s nervous voice came back on the line. “Just hang on a minute while I put you on speaker, ok?”</p>
<p>“Connor, Megan, can you hear us ok?” Simon sounded angry and strained and Megan could just picture the big captain chomping on the butt of a cigar (unlit of course) in Jim’s loft.  “Could you just repeat what you said to Jim?”</p>
<p>“Certainly, captain.” Oozing helpful eagerness Megan prepared to thoroughly enjoy herself. “I said that Sandy’s fine, he’s unconscious at the moment due to the near breakdown he seems to be experiencing thanks to you two and that he’s told me everything that’s been going on with all of you.” Megan waited a beat and then added. “Sir.” She listened to the empty silence on the line and smiled to herself as she pictured two worried and embarrassed faces back in Cascade.</p>
<p>“Megan, look, whatever the kid’s…” Simon got no further before Megan cut him off.</p>
<p>“Simon, the kid is nearly thirty and thus a grown man.  Even if you and Jim can’t treat him with the respect he deserves to his face you will damn well do it when you speak of him to me, is that clear?”  The sharpness of Megan’s voice rousted two birds from their nest on the cabin’s roof over head but she did no more than glance at them before continuing bawling out Simon and Jim. “Now, I don’t know what the hell you two thought you were playing at treating Sandy the way you have done for the past couple of months but right at this minute you’re operating under my continued goodwill, not his, and you’d better stay aware of that fact, ok?”</p>
<p>“Crystal.” Simon’s voice was taut with fury at being spoken to like a child but it was apparent that he had taken Megan’s warning to heart. There was another long silence before Simon hesitantly cleared his throat. “Is he ok?”</p>
<p>“As I said, he’s fine.” Megan stood up and eased open the cabin door to see Blair still out like a light on the couch and then let the door close once more. “He’s done nothing but sleep and eat a little since he came to me on Friday night, but he’s fine.”</p>
<p>“He shouldn’t have done that.” Jim’s voice came back on the line and Megan caught the faint sound of an angry hand slapping wood. “This is nothing to do with you.”</p>
<p>“Is that right, Ellison?” Feeling the first faint stirrings of genuine anger, Megan walked away from the cabin and towards the tree line in case she started yelling and woke Blair. “And who else was he meant to talk to about all this? You and Simon have got your heads stuck so far up your collective arses that you couldn’t see between the two of you you’re killing him.  Blair’s a strong guy, emotionally and physically, but I’ll bet that neither of you have noticed that he’s dropped at least fifteen pounds while you’ve both been screwing him into the mattress or that he can barely keep his eyes open long enough to make it through the day because he’s so busy trying to meet your needs instead of his own.”</p>
<p>“You’re over the line, Connor.” Simon’s shocked voice had Megan snorting and moving a few more prudent feet into the forest.</p>
<p>“The hell I am, Captain.” Megan started to kick out at a handy tree and realised just in time that she had no shoes on so she settled for stamping her bare foot instead. “I had to drag what was going on out of him and then he still sat there and tried to tell me what was happening was ok.” Megan sucked in a furious breath. “Well, it’s not ok; this is abuse and if Sandy can’t make you guys see what you’re doing to him is wrong then I sure as hell will!”</p>
<p>“What? ABUSE!? We are NOT fucking abusing him, Connor!” Jim’s voice thundering down the line had Megan wincing and pulling the phone away from her ear. “I don’t know what FUCK Sandburg’s been telling you…”</p>
<p>“The bare facts, Ellison, and even if he hadn’t told me anything all I’d need to do is watch how you guys have been with him over the last couple of months. You’ve taken a vibrant, intelligent man and turned him into an exhausted shadow that’s running on fumes trying to meet all his commitments and keep the two selfish studs in his life happy at the same time. When was the last time he spent an evening with his friends away from the two of you or sat down and did more than the barest essentials on his Uni work without one of you prodding or poking at him?” Megan cast a look back the cabin to make sure she was still unheard as her voice rose steadily. “Even when his mother was in town a few weeks ago and he wanted to show her some of what he’s been working on for his diss he told me you guys barely gave him an hour alone with her and just went into another one of your pissing contests over who got to monopolise his time more.” Megan slapped a frustrated hand against the bark of a tree. “Sounds an awful lot like abuse to me.”</p>
<p>“Shit.” Simon’s pained whisper broke the stunned silence. “Shit, Connor, that’s not how he sees it, that’s not what this is.”</p>
<p>“Yes, Simon, that’s exactly what this is.” Megan tried to calm herself down but found she couldn’t stop the angry pounding of her heart or the furious tremor in her voice.  “And I’ll tell you something else, Captain; when you guys backed away from making him choose between you he was prepared to finish with you both and walk away because he knew that if he chose one over the other it would destroy you all. The two of you are the most selfish, undeserving, life-destroying bastards I’ve ever had the misfortune of meeting and I don’t know what the hell the universe thought it was doing when it gave you Blair.”</p>
<p>“Is that what he’s doing now?” Jim sounded lost as he spoke and Megan ruthlessly suppressed a pang of unwarranted sympathy as she listened to the barely audible voice. “Is he leaving?”</p>
<p>Megan drew out the moment, maliciously enjoying the well-deserved scare that she was giving the two men and then expelled a harsh breath of air. “No. He’s coming back with us tomorrow morning, God alone knows why. I suggest you use today to think about what you’re going to do when he comes home and how to fix what you’ve broken. I’m not going to tell him that we’ve had this conversation and if you’re smart you won’t either. Blair’s a proud, independent man and it would mortify him to think that I went behind his back like he was a kid, but I swear to God, if this continues, I will shoot the pair of you down like the dingoes you are before I see him take anymore of this shit.” Megan paused and then added triumphantly. “And I’m switching the phone off so don’t bother trying to call back. You’ll see us when you see us.” She cut the phone off with a mean laugh that didn’t quite drown out Simon and Jim’s yells and then turned the handset off all together. “Well, that worked up a bit of an appetite, better get started on lunch.” </p>
<p>Feeling indescribably pleased with herself, Megan sauntered back to the cabin to start preparing a meal that would hopefully help Blair stay awake for more than an hour at a time.</p>
<p>                                *********************************** </p>
<p>Blair felt great when he stepped off the elevator back at Prospect the next morning. Although he had to endure plenty of good natured teasing from Rafe and Brown at his inability to keep his eyes open for more than a couple of hours at a time, he had thoroughly enjoyed spending time with his friends and had nearly kissed Megan when she announced on the trip home that she had called the station to leave a message for Simon that she was going straight out to interview witnesses and was taking Blair with her for the day.  Megan had grinned at him as she shoved her phone back in her pocket and blithely informed him that he had the rest of the day to himself to do with it what he wished as she had every intention of taking a nice hot bath and catching up on some housework before heading out to another stakeout that evening with Rafe and H.</p>
<p>Blair hummed under his breath as he fitted the key in his door and thought about taking a nice hot shower and maybe heading out to catch a movie before Jim got home from work and shanghaied his time once more.  He bounced into the loft, simultaneously kicking the door shut and dropping his bag onto the floor and then froze as two horribly familiar bodies rose up from the couch to greet him. “Uh-oh.” He looked from Jim’s grim face to Simon’s and reluctantly abandoned the urge to take to his heels, instead deciding to move into the kitchen and grab a bottle of water from the fridge. “Hi, guys.”</p>
<p>Both men stared at him as though they had never seen him before and, impossibly, their faces became even grimmer. Jim felt a sharp stab of guilty pain as he took in the lines of strain and tiredness on his Guide’s face, still not entirely erased by his relaxing trip and swallowed hard. “Hey, Chief, you want to come sit down?” He glanced at Simon nervously. “We want to talk to you about something.”</p>
<p>Blair sighed. “I bet you do.” He cast one more longing glance at the door and then walked slowly into the living room, eyeing both men cautiously. “You guys ok?”</p>
<p>Simon looked his lover up and down and felt sick when he saw that Megan had, if anything, made light of Blair’s weight loss over the phone. Despite a valiant effort to disguise his shrinking frame with an extra layer of flannel shirt, it was painfully obvious Blair was at least a jeans size smaller than he had been before he had started sleeping with his boss and his Sentinel. “We’re fine, Blair. How are you?”</p>
<p>Blair kept one eye on the two cops as he tilted his water bottle to his mouth and wondered if he had entered into the Twilight Zone as he took an unnecessary sip of water. He was absolutely sure that the Jim and Simon he knew should have been shouting fit to raise the roof by now and possibly taking turns drop kicking him around the loft. He lowered the bottle and cast a surreptitious glance around the loft to check for pods lying around abandoned by the doppelgangers now impersonating his lovers. He wasn’t especially comforted not to find any. </p>
<p>“Chief, Blair, sit down.” Jim frowned as he followed the path of Blair’s eyes and wondered what his Guide was looking for and then tried to smile reassuringly as Blair eyed him warily. “It’s ok, we’re not mad.” </p>
<p>“Ok.” Blair edged towards the yellow chair and perched on the edge, braced to make a run for it if things turned ugly. “Let’s talk.” He frowned at the pieces of paper that Simon picked up from the coffee table and held out to him. “What’s this?”</p>
<p>“We got called out to a homicide Saturday morning and that’s when we found out you were gone.” Simon sat back down on the couch and watched Blair as he read over the papers in his hand with his mouth hanging open. “We didn’t know where you were or if anything had happened to you and we had to call around your friends and the people at Rainier.” Simon nodded at the papers that Blair laid on the coffee table with the delicacy of touch that he would use for an unexploded bomb. “That’s when we started to put together a picture of your movements for the last few weeks.”</p>
<p>“Oh.” Blair nodded to himself and wished fervently that the water in his hand were something stronger. “What happened?”</p>
<p>Jim looked puzzled. “We made a list of when you’d been at the station and when you’d been in classes…”</p>
<p>“No, man.” Blair laughed and shook his head. “What happened with the homicide, did you catch the perp?” Both men gaped incredulously at him. “What?”</p>
<p>“Chief, we’ve just found out you’ve been existing on an average of three and a half hours sleep a night for the better part of two months and you want to know if we caught a murderer?” Jim shook his head in stupefied amazement as Blair shrugged and nodded. “Christ. Yes. We caught him, ok? Tracked him down to his regular bar thanks to a description from a homeless witness and he’s safely locked away. Can you focus on the actual point of the conversation now?”</p>
<p>Blair rolled his eyes and flashed a well-practised obliging grin. “Sure, man, whatever you say.”</p>
<p>“Blair, this is serious!” Simon slapped a frustrated hand on his thigh and leaned forward. “Look at yourself, for god’s sake; you look like crap.”</p>
<p>“Way to turn my head with sweet nothings, Simon.” Blair rolled his eyes again and then focused suddenly as a thought occurred to him. “Hang on, why aren’t you guys demanding to know where I’ve been if I caused you this much trouble? If you were going that nuts trying to find me, how come I get home and finding you sitting around on the couch instead of ripping the city apart like you usually do when I go missing?” He caught the guilty flash in two pairs of eyes and made an intuitive leap. “Fuck. Megan.” </p>
<p>Jim thought of trying to deny it but knew what Blair was like when he had the bit between his teeth. “Yeah, ok, Megan. She called us late Saturday night when she finally checked her cell phone and realised that we were going nuts trying to find you.” He gestured towards the abandoned paper on the table. “When we’d spoken to her and she’d put us straight about a few things that’s when we started to make a list of your movements. Hell, the people at Rainier were no help at all, most of them haven’t seen you for weeks.”</p>
<p>Blair’s shoulders slumped in a bone weary sigh and he stared at the floor for a moment before looking up. “Sorry, guys. Look, I’ll talk to her, she’s just worried about me, she didn’t mean to piss you off.”</p>
<p>“Sandburg, she was right to worry about you.” Simon grabbed for the incriminating papers and waved them in the air furiously. “Thank god SOMEONE had the sense to see what was happening and call us on it.”</p>
<p>Blair blinked. “Er, what?” He looked from Simon to Jim and then back again. “You’re not mad that she knows?”</p>
<p>“Chief, I’m mad that you thought you couldn’t talk to us yourself about this, but I was through being mad with Megan when I realised just how close we’d driven you to the edge.” Jim scrubbed his hands over his tired face and then looked sheepishly up at his stunned friend. “Can you forgive us?”</p>
<p>Blair blinked again. “Huh?”</p>
<p>“We’ve treated you like crap, Blair.” Simon shook his head in disgust. “I wouldn’t blame you if you never spoke to either one of us again.”</p>
<p>Blair was hastily reconsidering his theory of pod people with a side option on abduction by aliens and was far too busy to worry about stuff like forgiveness at the moment.  The concept of ‘humble’ and Jim and Simon seriously screwed with his worldview but he’d be damned if he wasn’t seeing it now. “Um, ok.” He stood and wiped his suddenly nervously sweating hands on his jeans. “You guys hungry?”</p>
<p>“Are you?” Jim was staring at Blair’s body with an intensity that, for once, had nothing to do with how much he wanted to see it naked. “I’ll fix you something. What do you want?”</p>
<p>Seriously freaked out, Blair started reconsidering the option to take to his heels and hope he made the street far enough ahead of the other two to flag some help. “What is with you two?”  He planted his hands on his hips and scowled suspiciously. “Is there something going on you’re not telling me about? Is Naomi ok?”</p>
<p>“Jesus, Blair, we’re worried about you. Is that so difficult to believe?” Simon winced at the startled expression on Blair’s face at his words and thanked the lord his dark skin hid his shamed flush. “Fuck. Blair…Fuck.”</p>
<p>Blair’s eyebrows rose and he muffled a laugh. “Don’t really think this is a good time, Simon, but thanks for the offer.” He shook his head in fond exasperation and turned towards the kitchen. “Look, I’m going to take my poor, exhausted body over there and make us all some sandwiches, ok? You guys sit tight and try and get a grip on whatever is passing for your reality at the moment.”</p>
<p>“Megan said we were abusing you.” Blair stopped dead as Jim blurted out the words and whipped around as the Sentinel stared with humiliated eyes at the floor. “Is that true, are we abusing you?”</p>
<p>“Abusing? Me?” Blair’s mouth opened and shut soundlessly for a few moments before he shook his head like he was trying to clear water from his ears and tried again. “ME? ABUSE?”</p>
<p>“Yes.” Simon nodded firmly and tried to take comfort from Blair’s all too obvious astonishment at the thought. “We’re controlling and pushy and…”</p>
<p>Blair started to make alarming huffing noises as he wrapped his arms around his own waist like he was trying to stop himself falling apart. “Well, yeah, but that’s totally what you and Jim are about, man.” The chuffing noise grew louder as Blair stared from one crestfallen face to the other; he let out one whoop of laughter and stuffed a fist in his mouth as he rolled his eyes apologetically and then gave up and started to shake as he gave in to the hilarity wracking his body. “You…He…” Unattractive snorts echoed through the loft as Blair tried to bring himself under control when both the older men started to look hurt. “Sorry…I…thought…kidding…whips and….cuffs…” Moisture leaked from Blair’s eyes as he spluttered through another round of laughter. “Too much…man…too much…” </p>
<p>“Chief.” Jim’s growl was anything but amused, as usual Blair took absolutely no notice. “CHIEF!”</p>
<p>“Sorry…but…” Blair took a breath and tried to bring himself back under control as he wiped his streaming eyes. “It’s just…poor little abused me…and…and…you two big….bullies.” Another round of insulting laughter followed and then Blair was moving forward, still laughing, to take a firm grip on both his lovers and steer them towards the dining table. “Sit. I’m making us something to eat and then you can tell me all about the…bad th…things you’ve been doing to meeeee…” His voice trailed off in another fit of laughter. “Man, you guys slay me. Abuse. Hah!” And chortling away to himself, Blair entered the kitchen to start lunch.</p>
<p>                                         ****************************</p>
<p>Lunch, grilled cheese sandwiches and the last of the pasta salad lurking at the back of the fridge, passed peacefully enough. The three men ate their meal in silence, broken only occasionally by muffled sniggers from Blair as he ate and darted swift assessing looks at his companions and then finally they were all seated before empty plates and drinking down the last of the beer Blair had helpfully produced to ease the way of the sandwiches. “So.” Blair’s mouth twitched rapidly, but he managed to get another imminent laugh attack under control by ruthlessly pinching the inside of his thigh under the table. “I suppose we all need to talk.”</p>
<p>Feeling soothed, if not a little stupid, at Blair’s reaction to being told he was in not one, but two, abusive relationships, Jim and Simon exchanged glances. Simon shrugged reluctantly. “Guess so.” </p>
<p>Blue eyes clashed with brown as the two men engaged in a silent battle of wills to see who would be the first to speak. Jim snarled as Simon won by dint of being able to assign him nothing but paperwork for the next month and looked slowly back at his Guide. “You ran away.”</p>
<p>Blair firmly told himself he was absolutely not going to laugh anymore, no matter what the provocation, and managed to meet Jim’s worried eyes reasonably seriously. “No, Jim, I didn’t run away; mainly because I’m twenty-nine years old, not twelve. I chose to go away with a group of friends but I was less than honest with you both as to where I was going and for that I apologise.”</p>
<p>“You lied to us, Sandburg.” Simon’s hands clenched on his thighs and he hoped he didn’t sound as petulant to Blair as he did to himself. “You deliberately lied to us.”</p>
<p>“Nope. I cleverly, some might say brilliantly, allowed you both to think that I would be spending time with the other one, but I didn’t lie.” Refusing to feel guilty, Blair sipped from his beer and eyed both men. “Not once did I say exactly who I would be with or where I was, all I told both of you was that I had plans for the weekend and that I would be unavailable until Monday afternoon.” He looked pointedly at the kitchen clock which clearly stated it was just past one o’ clock. “I’m bang on time. You guys were the ones that seemed to prefer that I didn’t speak your names to each other unless it was work related, in fact you insisted on it.” Blair shrugged. “I was playing by the rules, guys.”</p>
<p>“Why didn’t you just tell us you needed some time to yourself, Chief?” Jim’s voice was harsh as he asked the question, but Blair could see from the expression on his face it was more from shame than anger. “Don’t you think you could have just saved us all this and trusted us to behave reasonably?”</p>
<p>The look Blair shared between them both spoke volumes. Simon and Jim both cringed a little and Blair sighed as he appeared to stare down at the tabletop for inspiration. “Look, I know this situation isn’t easy for any of us and it’s going to take some time to work out, and I’m more than willing to do that, but you’re both pretty intense guys to be around.” Blair looked up with a mischievous grin. “Which is great under certain circumstances, don’t get me wrong, but it hasn’t been easy being the undivided focus of your attentions and trying to get you both comfortable enough to trust that we what feel for each other is really tiring.” </p>
<p>Blair held up a hand to forestall whatever comments where lined up to come out of two opening mouths. “That part of it may be my fault, I don’t know.  Maybe I should have insisted that we all sat down and talked this out properly when we decided to continue what we have, but I’ve known you both a long time now and having control over your actions and situations has always been so important to you both that I figured it was better to give you both what you needed and just wait until things settled down by themselves.”  Smiling blue eyes looked between two mortified men. “To be honest, after I spent Thursday with Megan and you both decided to, uh, demonstrate your feelings for me, I was just too tired to go through the same thing again when I told you I was taking off for a couple of days.” Blair reached out and patted his men on their tense shoulders. “It’s great that you both want to see so much of me, and I love spending time with you, but I just needed not to be with you this weekend, ok?” His full mouth twitched in mirth again. “I certainly didn’t take off because I was too scared to face you both.”</p>
<p>“Thank God.” Jim wasn’t even aware he’d spoken the words aloud, he was just so relieved the weight that he had carried around in his chest since Megan had accused himself and Simon of abusing Blair’s trust and loving nature had finally lifted.</p>
<p>Blair lost the smile on his face as he watched Jim and Simon practically melt with relief opposite him. “Look, it sounds like Megan was a little hard on you two, so let’s get the record straight once and for all, ok? I love you, both of you. If anyone’s abusing anyone around here, it’s me. I’ve got both of you running around vying for my attention and I know that the only person you guys are focusing on is me. Neither of you have that.” For the first time since the he’d finished lunch, Blair looked a little nervous. “We’ve all changed a lot since the thing with the fountain, and maybe we did what we all needed to do to reconnect with each other, but it could be this isn’t working anymore.” He noticed absently that his hands were starting to sweat again as he forced his next words out. “Were you guys waiting for me to come home so that you could finish it?”  He felt his heart begin to race at the bland looks Simon and Jim both adopted and hurried on. “Because, if you were, then that’s cool. Whatever you guys need is ok. I mean, I’ll miss us and, y’know, being with you and everything but if you want to go back to being just friends or maybe you want me to finish working down at the station and find my own place to live then all you have to do…mmphff!”</p>
<p>Jim stared solemnly into Blair’s surprised eyes, blinking at him over the top of Jim’s hand firmly plastered over Blair’s runaway mouth. “No. That’s not what we want.” He waited a few seconds to be sure that his lover would stay silent and took his hand away. “We were together all weekend talking, well…” Jim shot a slightly embarrassed look at Simon. “Mostly talking. There was some shoving involved as well. But we definitely did a lot of talking, especially after Megan talked to US.” He shuddered and looked deeply into Blair’s wide eyes. “The woman was just vicious, Chief.”</p>
<p>Blair smiled faintly and made a mental note to find out exactly what Megan had said that had so scared the crap out of both men, but right now he was interested in something far more curious. “You talked. Both of you? Without the aid of drugs and a gun held to your heads?” He tilted his head teasingly. “Ok, I’m definitely checking for any abandoned pods.”</p>
<p>Simon chuckled deeply and glanced wryly at Jim. “Believe me, Sandburg, there’s no one else in the world we’d do it for.”  He smiled at the bashful look on Blair’s face. “We know this situation can’t go on, which is why we’ve come up with a solution.”</p>
<p>Blair looked doubtfully at the two smug grins suddenly pointing his way. “O-kaay. Why am I suddenly very, very worried?”  The two grins widened to display teeth that looked a whole lot sharper than they had minutes before.  Blair swallowed. “Uh-oh.”</p>
<p>“The thing is, Chief, when we went over your schedule we couldn’t help but do a little math and see that you’ve been kinda short changing us.” Jim beamed delightedly at Blair’s baffled expression and took one of his Guide’s hands to link their fingers together. “So then we did some more math and worked out that if we just stopped seeing you separately and started seeing you together then that would solve a lot of our problems and it would free up some time for all of us, especially you.”</p>
<p>“That’s right.” Simon gently took hold of Blair’s other hand and entangled the fingers on that one. “We figured that if you loved us both and we loved you then we were just being kinda stupid about having this pissing contest with each other all the time, there’s enough of you to share.” He looked over Blair’s thinner frame with a frown. “Barely.”</p>
<p>Blair found he was nodding along in automatic agreement at the reasonable tones both men adopted and then he stopped hearing and belatedly started to listen. “What? Wait a minute…Are you guys saying…Hell, are you NUTS?!” He ripped his hands free and jumped up from the table in panic. “Both of you? At the same TIME?” His feet were fortunately working a lot quicker than his shocked brain and obligingly backed him away into the living room when Simon and Jim both climbed to their feet. “This is a joke, right? A little payback for making you guys worry this weekend. Right?”</p>
<p>“Nope.” Simon tucked his hands in his trouser pockets and rocked on his heels happily. “No joke.”</p>
<p>“You’re insane, have you seen me?” Blair looked down at himself and then at the two, much bigger men also studying himself. Quite hungrily actually, now he came to think about it. “Guys, you’ll kill me! Stone dead. I’ll be one flattened anthropologist. I can barely handle you one on one, if I try to take you both at once…” Words, for once, failed him. “It will NOT be pretty.” </p>
<p>“I don’t know, Chief.” Jim bared his teeth even more and folded his arms across his chest as he looked Blair appraisingly up and down. “I could really go for a Sandburg sandwich.”</p>
<p>Blair’s eyes bulged. “A Sandburg…” His feet helpfully moved him a little nearer the phone and he pointed a threatening finger. “That’s it, if you two come anywhere near me I’m calling Megan. Don’t make me do it, guys!”</p>
<p>Banks and Ellison paused and considered his words. As threats went it was a pretty impressive one. They tilted their heads as they looked at Blair and then looked at each other. Then they grinned. “That’s ok, Sandburg, I think we’ll risk it.” Simon crooked a finger. “Come here.”</p>
<p>“Uh-uh, no WAY.” Blair’s feet blurred as he skittered away from the two large men advancing on him.  “You guys don’t even like each other that way!”</p>
<p>This time Jim’s face nearly spilt his face in two. “There may have been some experimental necking we forgot to mention in addition to the talking and shoving.” He high fived Simon before they split and began to converge on Blair in a classic pincer movement. “Turns out once we got over the whole jealousy thing we found out we’re still pretty good friends and we’re very compatible in other areas.”</p>
<p>“Well, shit.” Blair ducked and dodged under Jim’s reaching arm to make for the relative safety of the couch. “What if I don’t want to do this? What if I just want to carry on like before, but without the whole, y’know, trying to boink me to death thing?”</p>
<p>Both men stopped. “Then that’s your choice, Blair.” Simon lost the playful smile on his face and looked very seriously at his lover. “We’ll listen to whatever you want to do and we’ll find a way to make this work however you can be comfortable with it.”</p>
<p>Valiantly ignoring the theme to the Twilight Zone playing loudly in his head, Blair studied the two unexpected loves of his life and then shook his head in amazement. “Fine, ok, I give in. Whatever.” He smiled as he was surrounded by four warm loving arms and tried to find a way to breath as his face was smooshed against two hard chests. “I can’t wait to tell Megan about THIS.”</p>
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